Heart
by CloZack PASSION
Summary: Cloud and Zack share a moment after Zack returns from a long mission. [Oneshot CloZack Flufffest]


((Mediocre little fluffy one-shot. No plot, just boring fluff. I went for cuteness, but I guess it's more or less nothing. Very short, very 'I should be doing something in between Recalled to Life chapters so people know I'm not dead'. Enjoy?))

There was nothing more comforting to Cloud than Zack's warm embrace upon his return from a mission. He was happy to press his cheek against the warm skin on his lover's chest, taking in the scent he'd so longed for over the past week. Missions were coming for Zack far more often since his recent promotion to first class, making these opportunities rare and especially precious.

Worry was the primary response each time Cloud would hear of one of his love's new missions. Even as Zack did his best to make each task sound far easier and less dangerous than it really was, Cloud found a new danger and a new reason to worry himself to the verge of tears each time he explained the mission and into a sobbing wreck the longer Zack was gone.  
After a full week away, Cloud felt ready to implode. As he lay now in Zack's bed, clinging to the Soldier as if his life were dependent on how tightly he could hold on, he found comfort in every action.  
"I tell you every time I go that I'll be just fine." Zack spoke in a low voice, running his fingers through his love's hair. Despite his assurances, he couldn't deny the fact that Cloud's attention made him feel like nothing else could. He never would have imagined that, after all the girls he'd had practically swooning at his feet, a shy little MP such as Strife would be the first he could truly call 'love' without regret.  
"I know." Cloud whispered, loosening his grip and adjusting himself so he lay comfortably on Zack's chest. This was the most comforting thing Cloud knew to do when he finally found himself in Zack's arms again. He rested his cheek softly on the soft skin over more firm muscle on his lover's chest. He closed his eyes, glad to feel the gentle movement of his own head as Zack's chest expanded with each steady breath.  
_'He's alive_. _It's okay now. He's alive._' is the thought process that went through Cloud's mind every time he lay this way- every time the elder Soldier came home.  
At the same time, Zack would run his large, calloused hand gently over the younger boy's back. He always felt so cold to the touch that sometimes Zack wondered how the boy managed to survive. It was as though he was literally cold-blooded. Although he couldn't explain it, he knew Cloud's affinity for this ritual and went through with it for as long as was necessary.  
Cloud tightened his eyes shut, letting a breath out through his mouth as he nestled himself in, his ear pushed eagerly against the warm flesh.  
It wasn't until he could hear the clear, steady rhythm of Zack's heart thumping beneath his ear that he could truly let himself relax, convincing himself that he really was okay.  
An entire week away. Cloud couldn't remember a time before this that he'd been gone so long without warning. At least in the past he could brace himself. He felt his eyes filling with tears. _Where the hell was this coming from? _Zack was okay. He knew he was okay. He couldn't break down now.  
"Are you alright?" Zack asked now, feeling Cloud tense against him again. By this point, Cloud was usually relaxed and even beginning to fall asleep normally. But Cloud was more tightly wound than he could remember him being in the past, the muscles in the younger man's back like steel to the touch.  
"Sorry." Cloud breathed, trying to refocus his attention, to calm himself down.  
_Lub-Dub Lub-Dub Lub-Dub..._  
He studied the sound in his ear. This sound he knew well enough, though he never tired of it. Something about it kept him constantly enthralled. He was sure that it was the fact that it was, in his mind, completely his own. A trait that was uniquely Zack's physically, but something that only he would have the pleasure of knowing.  
Zack smiled to himself as he felt Cloud's body relax against his own again. It pained him more than he would ever let anyone know to leave the boy the way he did. It was getting worse, too. In his mind, he made up a million plans to take him away...to leave Shinra and start a new life for him. If only doing so wouldn't spell out his own death. And yet, the mere thought of whisking the boy away, of being the hero Cloud held him to be, excited him in a way none of Shinra's missions could.  
_Lub-DubLub-DubLub-Dub...  
_Cloud's eyes opened slightly, staring at nothing as his eyes had little time to adjust to the darkness of the room. Zack's heartbeat quickened notably, causing Cloud to suck in breath, holding it for a moment, hoping it would somehow return the comfortingly slow rhythm to him.  
"Are...you okay?" Cloud found himself asking before he even realized he'd opened his mouth. Zack blinked a few times to clear his mind when Cloud asked. Was the boy really observant enough to notice what must have been perhaps the tiniest tensing of his muscles when the dreams of freedom crossed his mind?  
"Yeah. What makes you ask?" He could actually feel Cloud's cheek heat up as he asked. _What the hell? _he asked himself, at a complete loss.  
"It's just..." Cloud let out a small sigh. He counted each of the hurried beats of Zack's heart as they reached his ear, trying to decipher what the sudden change in pace could mean. At the same time, he tried to think of a proper excuse as to why he would ask, apparently out of the blue, if there was something bothering his love.  
"Just what?" Zack asked, perhaps too quickly. Why was he so curious as to what tipped Cloud off? Was it that important that he was able to lie to the boy? The thought actually scared him.  
"I...I can hear..." Cloud began, tensing again, "I can hear your heart." he whispered, pulling himself up now. What was once comforting now made him feel guilty and invasive. "It...it started beating kinda fast..." he explained further, thankful for the dimness of the room to hide the blush on his cheeks, "I was just wondering...if you were alright."  
Zack's lips twisted into a smile. He wondered if this was Cloud's typical routine. Was it his own heart that kept the boy plastered to him each time he came home. While the idea was foreign, he could make sense of it almost instantly, given the boy's worry over his own safety and life. Something about the whole ordeal struck him as irresistibly cute.  
"I'm surprised it's the first time you've noticed it." Zack said now, sitting up and gently urging Cloud closer to him. His charm was on in full-force and Cloud could see the twinkle in his eyes even in the darkness of the windowless room.  
"It's not...I mean I can hear...sometimes..." Cloud's voice didn't seem to work. Why the hell did this embarrass him so much? He could kick himself in the ass for mentioning at all.  
"Not that." Zack said softly, cupping Cloud's chin in his hand, "My heart beating fast, I mean." he flashed a smile that Cloud swore lit the room, "I can feel it pounding like mad every time you're close." And before Cloud had the chance to respond, Zack pressed his lips firmly against his, taking Cloud's hand with his free one and touching it firmly to his chest.  
Cloud couldn't help but blush to feel beneath his fingertips the truth in Zack's last statement.


End file.
